At times it seems, indie filmmakers, in a rush to buy the latest and greatest camera, overlook the category of production sound entirely. I'm not sure why... So I'll do a little post on this topic and give a thumbs up to an excellent audio recorder.

The Zoom H4N Handy Recorder by Samsung deliver on all level, in term of cost (priced at $299), sound quality, records up to 24-bit/96kHz, profession inputs, offering 2 XLR ports with phantom power for connecting microphones, and onboard mics are arranged in true X/Y fashion to produce natural stereo recordings with no phasing issues. I strongly would recommend this recorder to anyone attempting to shoot a professional film. But I would prefix that by saying of course you should pair the Zoom H4N with the standard pro audio gear, such as, shotgun mic, boom pole, wireless lavalier mics and transmitter. Now, all you need is a Lumix GH1, a bit of luck, and you'll be the next Michael Bay. Happy filmmaking!